1912] | Ritter: The Marine Biological Station of San Diego — 155 
being raised. Considerable time was devoted to the effort during 
the summer, not only by some of the gentlemen of the committee 
but by the writer of this report. The attempt was unsuccessful, 
the subseriptions having reached only about one-third of the 
required amount. This experience furnished to the friends of 
the enterprise a lesson not to be ignored as to the extreme diffi- 
culty of raising a considerable sum of money for such a purpose 
by such a method. 
Much attention was given to the question of where, in or 
near San Pedro harbor, a permanent laboratory should and could 
be located. The outcome of this was a disquieting recognition 
of the rapidly growing commercial importance of the harbor 
and of the probability that a large urban population would be 
eathered around the little bay in a few years. This realization 
was disquieting not from any hostility to commercial develop- 
ment, but from a prevision of the inevitable destruction of some 
of the best collecting grounds in and about the harbor; and of 
the contamination of the sea-water by sewage and other incidents 
of industrial activity. These considerations were weighty in 
determining the next move. 
V. CORONADO, 1903-04 
As already indicated, the ‘‘Elsie*’ had made a run to San 
Diego during the summer of 1901 and had done considerable work 
there. The trip was planned largely with a view to obtaining 
information concerning the general conditions of that locality 
from the standpoint of marine research. Report from trust- 
worthy sources, strengthened by cursory observation by the 
writer in the summer of 1891, was to the effect that San Diego 
Bay and vicinity presented many natural advantages for such an 
enterprise as we were oceupied with. To leave this region unvis- 
ited would be contrary to the original idea of making a recon- 
naissance of the California coast before settling anywhere perma- 
nently. Professor Kofoid, who had charge of the 1901 expedition 
to San Diego, returned to San Pedro enthusiastic over the bio- 
logical merits of that more southern locality. Besides he had 
been interviewed by a citizen, Dr. Fred Baker, who insisted that 
the San Diego region was probably the proper place against all 
